Title: "Family"

Summery: Karakura town has been plagued by a crime wave and no one knows who or what is behind it. As Kurosaki Ichigo - news reporter for the city's largest news station - tries to unravel the mystery, he is thrown into war he knew nothing about and quickly finds himself fighting for his life.

Pairings will include: IchigoxKensei, IchigoxRenji

Warnings: Violence, mature subject matter & language, light yaoi. Some OCCness.

Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach or TMNT, *pout*

Chapter 2

AN: Ok, so I know I said this would come out quickly, this chapter should have been out last week. I'm very sorry. Unfortunately (for me and all of you) my carpel tunnel has been really bad lately... I can barely type more than a few sentences a day so on top of all my other stuff it's not easy. I had surgery on one hand many years ago because of it, honestly I'm lucky it's taken this long for the other hand to start acting up. Nevertheless, I will do my best to keep things coming. Well enough about me, lets keep this show going shall we? :) Enjoy.

Also, a shout out to SLYSWN, thank you for your review :) It really helped kick me in the butt to finish this.

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Shinji walked quietly his feet occasionally splashing into one of the many puddles scattered through out the tunnels, he spotted Love leaning quietly against the cold wall. The sky was clear so the moon light poured in through the grate above, shadowing the tall dark man with vertical stripes. Love looked up from his manga and nodded towards the blond. "How you doin'?"

The short slim blond stuffed his hands in his pockets and joined his friend, "Fine." He replied flatly, looking up at the full moon.

Love glanced at his watch. "Pizza dude's got 30 seconds."

A large piano grin flashed across Shinji's face as he nodded in agreement. "Hey Love, did you ever think about what Urahara said tonight? I mean about what it would be like, you know, not having him?"

"Hmmm..." Love folded the manga across his chest and looked down at the watch. "Times up! 3 bucks off." He added with a smirk. Shinji simply shook his head and went back to staring at the moon.

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The small rumbling noise from the scooter echoed easily in the empty street, the young men slowed down trying to spot the right address. He parked close to what he figured was the right place and hopped off. He was small for his age and with his large blue eyes and chin length black hair people often thought he was just a kid so it was hard for him to get serious jobs which was why he, Hanatoro, was here, in one of the most run down districts in Karakura, delivering pizza.

He made his way to the hot box strapped to the back of his scooter and pulled out a single large box, studying the address marked on it once more. The street was poorly lit so he had to walk close to each building to figure out what the numbers were. "1...123... 123 and 1/4?" He whispered. Hanatoro faced the door with the matching address, "123" he muttered and took a few extra steps to the right, "And a quarter?" but there was nothing there. He looked around confused, "Where could 123 and 1/4 be? This doesn't make any sence..." The young delivery man was lost in thought, convinced he'd been had, again, when a voice echoed from under his feet. He let out a shamefully girly squeak.

"You're standing on it, dude." A deep voice came from under the grate Hanatoro had been standing on, sounding slightly amused. A few bills were poked through the grill. "Just slip it through here." Hanatoro looked around, unsure of what to do, finally he leaned down and gently let the pizza box slip through and grabbed the money with his other hand. The exchange was succesful, he turned around to leave and counted the money, he's was short 3 dollars... He turned back and leaned down towards the grate."Umm... this isn't all the money." He said shyly, it sounded almost like an apology.

The mystery voice chortled. "You're 2 minutes late dude."

"Oh but... but... I couldn't find the place..." Hanatoro got on his knees and tried to peek through the grates.

"Wise men say forgiveness is divine but never pay full price for late pizza!" A different voice added from the tunnels.

Hanatoro stood up and sighed looking forlone, "I need to get a new job... Somewhere where I don't have to drive around..." He turned back quickly and drove off, feeling rather depressed.

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Kensei walked out of the movie theater barely blending into the crowd, he was a few inches taller than everyone else and broad in the shoulders, his clothing rather militaristic and even with the cap hiding his short silver hair and piercings, people tended to steer clear of him as if by instinct. He grumbled as he marched down the street, the movie had been horrible and completely unrealistic, Kensei had spent the whole time picking the plot apart so now instead of feeling a little relaxed he was just as irritable as before.

Even though it was rather late the streets were full of people, city centers tended to come alive at night but Kensei hated it. Everywhere he looked all he seemed able to do was assess potential threats, his friends always got on his case that he was incapable of relaxing and just letting go, unless it was in a fight of course. It came to no surprise that he easily spotted the two teens running in his direction, they pushed and shoved their way through the busy sidewalk and caught the old lady completely unaware, snatching her purse before she could fully register it. Kensei stretch out a solid arm and clothes lined the first teen, the boy made a sort of surprised choking sound as he flew back knocking back into his accomplice, both thieves laid sprawled out on the pavement groaning in pain. Kensei's gloved hand grabbed the purse off the ground and gently tossed it back to the women, not waiting for her to say anything he turned back to stare down the teens who were gathering themselves up. He could tell the were considering retaliating despite the small crowd that was beginning to gather, unfortunately as much as Kensei wanted to teach the morons a lesson he couldn't afford the scene it would cause so he curled his fist, the knuckles cracking loudly. Shaking his head, his features menacing and determined, the thieves got the message and took off running into the park as if their lives depended on it and in all honesty, it did.

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Both teens came to a stop once they found a small clearing in the park they fled into, breathing heavily they rested their hands on their knees trying to catch their breaths. "Who the hell was that guy?" The taller of two asked, still unsure of what had exactly happened.

"No fucking clue man but I feel like I just got taken out by a fucking bus!" His voice was still raspy from the way his throat had been crushed by the mystery man's solid arm.

A rustling from the darkness startled the teens, they straightened up putting on brave faces expecting the man from the street but were instead greeted by yet another unknown figure. This man was even taller than the last one but seemed leaner, he wore torn blue jeans, a black long-sleeved shirt the buttons completely undone to reveal a tight white tank. From the dim light they could see the black lines of large tribal marking peaking from over the pectorals as well as on the mans neck, he had long dark red hair pulled in high messy pony-tail. The teens could not however clearly make out the man's face since his eyes and a good portion of his forehead were obscured by a pair of large dark sunglasses. The man grinned wolfishly at the teens, their bravery quickly leaving them.

"Well, well, what do we have here? You little pukes, robbing little old ladies, that's a terrible crime..." The red head paused just long enough to pull out the hockey stick he had strapped to his back, extending it towards the youths he chuckled darkly. "And this..." He tightened his grip on the handle with both hands. "This is the penalty!" With a single swing he struck both teens, hitting them squarely across the chest knocking them down on their butts. As one of the teens tried getting up, the redhead hooked the stick behind his ankle and pulled back causing the teen to fall back down, face first in the dirt. "Tch. Pathetic" He drawled in boredom. The thieves looked up expecting another hit as the redhead raised the hockey stick once more but strick never got a chance to land as the man was pushed from behind, sending him staggering forward causing him to trip over the teens and tumble to the ground, the hockey stick flying into an unknown bush.

An indignant shout came from the redhead as he quickly got to his feet. "What the hell do you think you're doing? And who the hell are you?" He barked savagely at the new comer, taking a few moments to take in the other mans appearance. His attacker was slightly shorter than him but still tall compared to the norm, cargos tucked into combat boots, a black and white trimmed tank under a well worn leather jacket, the look was completed with orange fingerless gloves which the man was currently flexing in anticipation. The only detracting thing from the man appearance was the nondescript baseball cap hiding the his face.

"What the hell am I doing? What the fuck are you doing? I had this handled!" The shorter man barked.

"Tch, ya sure! I saw you let 'em run off! You did your job now let me do mine, these little shits need to be taught a lesson." The redhead stated matter of factly.

"Not by you they wont!"

As the two men argued, the teens wasted no time in making their escape and fled the scene never looking back. The redhead scowled and shook his head, he reached up and pulled his shades onto the top his head revealing tattooed eyebrows and forehead, the markings etching into pronounced windows peak. "See now, I think you're the one that's needs to be taught a lesson." He reached behind his back and pulled out two baseball bats. "Class is pain 101," He spun the bats expertly in hands stopping briefly pointing at himself, "Your instructor, Abarai Renji."

"Don't bet on it pal! But I don't have time to waste with you." Kensei would've loved a good old one on one trashing but he'd delayed getting back long enough as it was and he was sure is was already in for a lecture from Urahara.

"Well tough shit!" Without wasting another moment the redhead, now known as Renji, launched himself towards Kensei swinging the left bat in a backhand first narrowly missing the shorter mans head. The right bat quickly followed but Kensei stop it, catching it mid swing and wrapping his left hand around the bat effectively locking it in his grip.

Looking rather unaffected by what should have been a painful catch, Kensei smirked from under the brim of his cap. "That the best you can do?" He taunted.

Renji grit his teeth, grunting in effort he pulled the right bat back, bringing the other man in close and swung the left bat landing a solid hit on the others back. Renji swiftly followed the hit by stepping forward to hook the others ankle, tripping the man and shoved him to the ground. The red head grinned widely at the pained grunt escaping from the shorter man as he spilled towards the ground but the smile faded when the man quickly caught himself, bat still firmly in his grip, and righted himself into an aggressive stance. The cap that had hidden the his face was now on the ground exposing a strong jaw, sharp eyes and surprisingly silver hair, considering the man's youthful appearance. Renji also noticed the man had several piercings, maybe 3 on the left ear and 1 on a slim white eyebrow.

Kensei's face was set in a light smirk. "Playing dirty now?" He discarded the bat and pulled the Kbar from the sheith tucked in his boot. He held the blade with confidence, despite it not being his usual one, the other lost to the orange head earlier that night, the blade facing out and away from himself. It only took a few quick steps to close the distance between them and he swung out narrowly missing Renji's chest.

"Who's playing dirty now, bastard!" The redhead accused dodging several more knife strikes but his attention was so focused on evading getting sliced he didn't notice the large left fist until it crunched on his cheek causing him to lose his footing and crash to the ground. Slightly dazed Renji looked up from his spot on the ground to see the silver haired man standing over staring at him menacingly.

"Who's teaching who?" Kensei growled, he was surprised Renji was still conscious after the hit he'd landed, if this guy hadn't been such a jerk he may have been slightly impressed. He lifted a boot up, crushing the redheads chest under his heel. Unfortunately for Kensei, his moment of dominance was cut short when the other -with what Kensei could only attribute to a unpresidented amount luck- was able to lift his legs of the ground, hooking the proped up leg between them and throwing Kensei to ground, causing his head bouncing off the dirt painfully. Cursing loudly he struggled to his feet readying himself to continue the fight but when he looked around the redhead had vanished, having taken advantage of the distraction to run off.

"Come back here Abarai! I'm not finished with you! DAMMMMNNNN!"

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The door squeaked loudly on its hinges causing Kensei to wince slightly, after a terrible night the last thing he wanted was to have a confrontation with his friends or a lecture from Sensei. He sighed when he noticed to main room was bathed in darkness, he knew the place well and didn't really need any light to make his way around. Just has a reached the coat peg the sound of match striking echoed through the room, dim shadows cast themselves around the room and the silver haired man groaned.

"Kensei." Urahara's voice was soft yet firm, he sat in the same chair he always did and the lit a candle to his side. "Come, sit." He gestured to the cushion on the floor at his feet.

"Couldn't this wait 'til morning?"

"You will listen now." Urahara was still calm but it was clear he would not take no for an answer, he paused briefly to allow his stubborn pupil to sit. "My master Yoruichi's first rule was; possess the right thinking. Only then, can one receive the gift of strength, knowledge and peace. I have tried to channel your anger Kensei, but more remains. Anger clouds the mind, turned inward it is an unconquerable enemy. You are unique among your brothers for you choose to face this enemy alone but as you face it do not forget them and do not forget me. I am here, my son."

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"Kurosaki, you could have called me last night, you know." Ryuken's voice lacked the concern that would have normally accompanied such words. " I'd like to be notified when one of my best reporters has been mugged."

Ichigo starred in his bathroom mirror, gingerly removing the band-aid from the cut on his forehead, he winced slightly and sighed noticingt the purple tinge it was quickly taking on. This would no doubt mean more time in the make-up chair before going on air, something he truly hated. He glared at his bosses reflection and scowled, Ryuken Ishida was an uptight jerk but he ran the best station in the city and everyone knew it.

"I wasn't mugged Ryuken!" The orange head insisted, again. "I'm fine, see! You don't need to come check on me, I'll be able to work." He knew full well his boss had only come knocking first thing in morning, not because he was worried about Ichigo but because he wanted to make sure his star reporter would be up to par.

Ryuken leaned his long, lean frame against the door jam, his face expressionless as ever. "From now on, security will escort you to that rust pile van of yours every night."

Ichigo tried not to laugh, instead in opted to mock his boss with sloppy salute. "Aye!"

"You're childishness is unimpressive, Kurosaki."

"Oi! Uryu, how's school going?" Ichigo inquirred to the youth sitting in his kitchen, making a point of ignoring the older Ishida.

"Fine." The dark haired teen said stiffly.

Ryuken scoffed. "Yes wonderful...So wonderful in fact, I have to drive him there every morning just to make sure he actually attends."

Uryu ignored his father and placed a set of earbuds in ears and returned to staring at nothing.

"It seems he has decided to ignore me by using those things..." Ichigo thought Ryuken could have sounded a bit more caring but it wasn't all that surprising, actually he thought Uryu's idea was pretty good. Normally he would argue the case, but he knew there was really no point, the two Ishidas always seemed to be locking horns. Ichigo hated seeing family treat each other this way, especially since he had lost his own.

Ryuken had moved from his spot in the door frame to glare through the window at the street below. "Wonder what is going on, out there... I've never seen anything like this before." Ichigo quirked an eyebrow in his bosses direction while fixing his tie. "Its like the city is falling apart, it's getting to the point where people are afraid of stepping outside even during the day time."

It was Ichigo's turn to scoff. "Well I can tell you one thing, after everything I've been hearing out the downtown area, Yamamoto is gonna have some explaining to do this afternoon."

"Kurosaki, do tread has already lodge a complaint about you with the Mayor, I cannot afford the stations name to be tarnished by your... zeal."

Both men were so engrossed in their conversation they never noticed the dark haired teen stretch and pluck the few dollar that were poking out of the reporters wallet.

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"We are presently executing a plan of re-deployment, that will minimize response times, while maximizing coordination between patrol units as well as a decentralized networking scheme." The stern looking man gazed at the reporter and camera crew, he was well known throughout the city, his long beard and almost closed eyes gave him a sage appearance but Police Chief Yamamoto had a fiery temper and no patience for people who questioned his methods.

"I'm not sure I understood that Chief Yamamoto," Ichigo knew damn well what the old man had meant, -they weren't doing fuck all- so he pressed on. "Would you mind repeating that, in english perhaps." The orange head tried not to smirk as the Chief's eyes opened wider, a clear sign he'd struck a nerve.

"What that means , is that we have everything well in hand."

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"Then you know why the crime rate has been escalating recently?" The voice from the reporter was slightly distorted by the old television.

"Look everyone!" Rose called out, gathering everyones attention.

Shinji threw himself in front of the screen. "It's him!"

Love quickly joined the pair and watched as the orange haired reporter roasted the cities Chief of Police, much to their delight.

"No I did not say that either, if you would please only ask questions..." Yamamoto replied stiffly and the screen was blocked by Shinji who hugged the screen furiously.

"I'm in love..." Shinji sighed haplessly before being shooed away from the screen by Rose.

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Multiple screens in various states of disrepair were spread out before a figure cloaked in the darkness of the unlit room. The reporters voice the only sound resonating in the all but empty space. "What do you know about an organization known as The Espadas?"

The screen flickered to the old Police Chief. "There is no evidence to link such a name to these incidents."

The reporter however was not satisfied."Are you denying that such an organization, The Espadas, exists?"

When the screen shifted back to the Chief a knife flew across the room and buried itself in the screen, the response remained unheard.

The chair turned and a figure hidden in the dark spoke out coolly, the voice was soft and could have almost been charming if it had not be for the frozen razors no amount of warmth could hide. "Find him... Silence him."

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AN: Well that's the end of chapter 2. Things are starting to pick up and I'll do my best to have chapter 3 out soon. Thanks for reading and if you review, thank you, it helps motivate me ;)

-Ja ne